TutoringGo Review Summary

TutoringGo/Tutoring KR is a Korean ESL company hiring online Native English and Filipino tutors. Pay is $10-$15/hr and $2.70-$4.50/hr respectively, with a degree/diploma and experience required. Most classes are audio-only 1v1 conversations with adults and children lasting 20-60 minutes, though hiring is competitive.

Tutoring Pros and Cons

Pros:

• Flexible hours – just login when you want to pick up students
• Twice-monthly payments
• Minimal prep time – materials provided
• Audio-only classes are more comfortable for some students/tutors, no need for TPR

Cons:

• No guarantee of student bookings – can take up unpaid time waiting for calls
• Competitive hiring process – only 8-10% of applicants are successful
• Minimum payout threshold of $200
• Audio classes can pose additional challenges, e.g. can’t see non-verbal cues

Is TutoringGo Legit?

Tutoring is a Korean online ESL company that was founded in 2016. Due to their generic name, they are also commonly referred to as TutoringGo, Tutoring Korea (Tutoring KR), and Tutoring Global. Their legitimacy is underlined by being an education partner of major global brands such as Samsung and Fedex.

What Is TutoringGo/Tutoring KR?

Tutoring KR ESL lessons are primarily conducted 1v1 via audio only, though they also run some junior video classes (hired for separately). Students can be of all ages and primarily come from South Korea, with the company claiming over 1.4 million users and 700+ tutors.

Classes are interactive and conversational, conducted around topic cards that are picked by the student and are based on particular topics such as travel, movies, or cooking. While tutors assist students in learning specific vocabulary through speaking practice, they are also expected to help develop their skills and personal development by establishing a bond of mutual trust.

Native tutors are recommended to intermediate students and above, with a focus on speaking English more fluently, whereas ‘Global’ (Non-Native) tutors are expected to teach using a more formal method better suited for beginners.

To help understand how Tutoring works, the videos below feature recordings of real audio classes and show how tutors and topics are selected by students:

Tutoring KR Salary Information

TutoringGo pay rates vary depending on whether you are applying as a Native Tutor or Global Tutor and the exchange rate at time of payment:

• Native Tutors receive a base rate of between US$10-$15 an hour
• Global Tutors start on US$2.70/hr, going up to $3-$4.50 after probation

The company also offers incentive schemes each month for:

• peak hours slots
• student enrollees
• most tutoring hours
• most slots (with zero no-shows)
• opening more slots than the previous month
• having the highest conversion rate
• most improved tutors

The TutoringGo salary is paid twice a month, on the 10th and 25th via PayPal. There is, however, a minimum payout threshold of $200, otherwise your earnings roll over until you accumulate that amount.

Tutoring Hours and Schedule

Tutoring operates 24/7, though their peak hours are 6pm-11pm (KST) on weekdays and noon-11pm on weekends, while the Junior video department works between 7am-9pm.

Tutors decide what hours they wish to work, simply logging in and making themselves available for students to call them.

Audio conversational classes last a minimum of 20 minutes, though students can choose to extend them up to 60 minutes. Junior video lessons are 15 minutes in length.

Written feedback is required after each class, though as the students bring a topic card with them there is minimal prep beforehand.

A tutor no-show on more than 3 occasions results in being prevented from opening any appointment slots for 2 weeks.

Tutoring KR Requirements

To become a higher-paid Native Tutor with Tutoring, you should come from the USA, UK, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, or Ireland. South Africans are sometimes, but not always, accepted by this company.

For any other country, apply as a Global Tutor, though this position is typically for Filipinos.

You should also be at least 22 years of age and have:

• A Bachelor’s degree (Native tutors should also have a certificate in teaching/Education if their degree is not in that subject)
• 2+ years’ experience teaching ESL online and/or offline
• Good English grammar and pronunciation
• Strong communicability and interpersonal skills
• In-depth knowledge of teaching best practices and educational guidelines
• Passion for teaching, with the ability to reach out to different levels of students to create a relationship of mutual trust
• Knowledge of how to organize a class and make learning English an easy and meaningful process
• A creative approach to tasks
• Professionalism, self-motivation, energy, and commitment
• Strong moral values and discipline

Experience in teaching OPIc and TOEIC is a plus.

Tutoring Technical Requirements

• OS: Windows 10, 64-bit
• Processor: Intel i3/i5/i7 6th generation or higher
• RAM: 8GB or higher
• At least 20GB of free hard disk space
• A wired LAN internet connection (not WiFi), with 10mbps download and 1mbps upload speeds for audio classes (Junior video classes require 15mbps download and 20mbps upload) – test your speed here
• USB headset
• Good lighting and free from background noise

TutoringGo Application Process

There are 6 stages to the TutoringGo hiring process:

1. Resume screening
2. Technical check
3. Video interview
4. Training
5. Mock lessons and test calls
6. Last screening

To begin, fill in a Tutoring KR application form for the position you are interested in (you can change the language from Korean to English in the top-left corner of the screen):

• Native Tutor
• Global Tutor

You will be asked for your:

• Name
• Email address
• Phone number
• Resume
• Self-introduction video (at least 3 minutes, showing your speaking ability – pronunciation, grammar, expression, etc.)
• Speedtest screenshot
• Computer Specs screenshot
• Certificate of Degree/Diploma
• Certification (i.e. TEFL/TESOL if you have one)
• Nationality
• Country of Residence/Home Address
• Skype ID
• Internet Service Provider
• Internet Connection Type
• Internet Speed
• Which days of the week and at which hours of the day can you teach online?
• Terms and conditions agreement

Interviews are conducted over Skype, but it should be noted that only 1 out of every 10-12 applicants is hired, and the company does not respond to everyone.

Tutoring KR Reviews – What Is It Like Working at Tutoring?

The Tutoring Glassdoor page gives the company an overall rating of 4.1 out of 5, with 74% willing to recommend them (at this time). I have collated all the comments from Tutoring reviews that have been left over the last year. These talk positively about the support system, audio-only classes, timely payments, and teaching materials/topic cards, though there are complaints about incentive inconsistency, repetitive work, and glitchiness of the platform, while the amount of pay, class availability, and coaches/trainers all receive mixed views:

• Advantages:
  • “salary is justifiable. support system is ok
  • Audio Only. Pays on time. Work when you want 24/7. Trainer is professional and fun and responds to questions. Management keeps everyone updated
  • You have flexible hours.
  • My TL [Team Leader] is very helpful.
  • Flexible schedule Good money Great coworkers Great clients Good benefits
  • Chill job; just teach and get paid -no need to prepare your own teaching materials -topic cards/teaching materials are already included in the platform -timely payout -the TLs I’ve been with so far are okay; no power trippers so far -online wfh job, audio-only classes; very convenient -monthly QA with detailed evaluation and mentoring if needed -trainings are regularly provided: OPIC, FREETALKING, TOEIC, etc. -additional incentives for booked classes
  • Friendly students – easy topic cards”
• Disadvantages:
  • “Inconsistent incentives updated weekly and make no sense. Incentive range advertised .80cents – $30 BIG LIE
  • It’s sometimes boring and repetitive.
  • The new policy sucks, no students, and no way of making money.
  • Parents
  • Recently, they implemented a reduction in the ceiling rate for teachers. This is another cost-cutting I suppose. -once ceiling rate is reached, there is a chance you will go back to average hourly pay if your QA scores are below superior -incentives are given in terms of points convertible to cash given during payout; missed classes by tutor will result in negative points, which will be balanced by earning more incentive points. -there used to be monetary rewards for high QA scores every 3 months.
  • Their teaching platform is so glitchy. If for example the lesson was cut short due to a platform error, the teacher’s salary will be deducted which I find unfair. I suppose this is the company’s cost-cutting method.
  • The schedule is not really flexible because if you cancelled a booked slot less than 72 hours before the scheduled lesson, your pay will be deducted.
  • The company literally practices the “No Work, No Pay” business philosophy. You need to complete a 1-hour or a 60-minute lesson to get that base rate. In the case of Junior Project, 1 class lasts for up to 15 minutes. For example: If you opened a slot from 14:00-15:00, students can take your lesson from these hours: 14:00-14:15; 14:20-14:35; 14:40-14:55. There’s always a 5-minute break in-between and unfortunately, those 5-minute breaks are not paid so they would only pay you $2.25 for those “taught” slots. You can only get that full on Standby mode which didn’t happen at all
  • Teachers for the Junior Project are required to join the group chat via Skype and recently via Rock. There’s nothing wrong with that but it’s indeed disappointing that they have the nerve to share the amount of salary each tutor earned for 1 cut-off on the group chat. It’s quite ironic because the company has tons of policies to protect the students’ privacy yet they don’t value their tutors’ privacy.
  • The coaches are somewhat overbearing. Everyone makes mistakes and it’s completely fine for me when they point them out. However, they expect you to polish those mistakes right away. They don’t buy the idea that ‘Change doesn’t happen overnight.’ Hope these coaches demand according to the salary they offer their teachers. They’d act as if they pay their teachers a lot.”

Conclusion – Should You Apply to TutoringGo/Tutoring KR?

Tutoring is a well-established online ESL company offering the flexibility of logging in and picking up classes whenever suits you. This is of course dependent on students picking you out from amongst the other tutors who are concurrently online, resulting in some wasted (unpaid) waiting time. This lack of guaranteed bookings makes Tutoring better suited as a supplementary side hustle than a primary teaching job. For other options, check out our full list of online companies that are hiring.